Trauma Informed Social Work Practice and Restorative Justice

1. Trauma InformedSocial Work Practice and Restorative Justice Lee Copenhagen, MSW, LCSW, PPSC California State University East Bay Social Work Field Instructor’s Orientation September 9, 2014

2. “The research is clear that the experience of abuse or neglect leaves a particular traumatic fingerprint on the development of children that cannot be ignored if the child welfare system is to meaningfully improve the life trajectories of maltreated children, not merely keep them safe from harm”. Bryan Samuels, Commissioner for the Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Testimony to House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Human Resources, Congress on 6/16/2011

3. Advanced Social Work Practice in TraumaCouncil on Social Work education (2012) To adequately prepare students to engage in trauma-informed practice, the social work curriculum needs to: (a) actively recognize the impact of trauma symptoms and disorders, (b) take into account this impact’s detrimental effects, and (c) provide students with the trauma-informed and evidence-based skills necessary for effective trauma intervention (Anda, 2008).

4. Trauma and Learning Policy Imitativewww.traumasensitiveschools.org

5. UM School of Social WorkTrauma-Informed Child Welfare Practice

6. Adverse Childhood Experiences • Abuse and Neglect (e.g., psychological, physical, sexual) • Household Dysfunction (e.g., domestic violence, substance abuse, mental illness) Impact on Child Development • Neurobiological Effects (e.g., brain abnormalities, stress hormone dysregulation) • Psychosocial Effects (e.g., poor attachment, poor socialization, poor self-efficacy) • Health Risk Behaviors (e.g., smoking, obesity, substance abuse, promiscuity) Social Problems • Homelessness • Prostitution • Criminal Behavior • Unemployment • Parenting problems • Family violence • High utilization of health and social services Disease and Disability • Major Depression, Suicide, PTSD • Drug and Alcohol Abuse • Heart Disease • Cancer • Chronic Lung Disease • Sexually Transmitted Diseases • Intergenerational transmission of abuse Source: Putnam, F.,& Harris, W. (2008). Opportunities to change the outcomes of traumatized children: Draft narrative. Retrieved from http://ohiocando4kids.org/Outcomes_of_Traumatized_Children

7. Long-Term Trauma Impact–ACE Pyramid: CDC Death Conception Mechanisms by Which Adverse Childhood Experiences Influence Health and Well-being Throughout the Lifespan

8. Impact of Extreme Deprivation on Brain Development

9. Info from theNational Child Traumatic Stress Network

10. Childhood Trauma and PTSD • Children who have experienced chronic or complex trauma may be diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). • According to the American Psychiatric Association, PTSD may be diagnosed in children who have: • Experienced, witnessed, or been confronted with one or more events that involved real or threatened death or serious injury to their physical integrity or that of others • Responded to these events by experiencing symptoms of PTSD Source: American Psychiatric Association (APA). (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM 5). Washington, DC: Author

11. Childhood Trauma and PTSD (cont.) • Key symptoms of PTSD: • Re-experiencing the traumatic event (e.g., nightmares, intrusive memories) • Intense psychological or physiological reactions to internal or external cues that symbolize or resemble some aspect of the original trauma • Avoidance of thoughts, feelings, places, and people associated with the trauma • Negative changes in thoughts and mood (e.g. inability to recall aspects of the trauma, feelings of fear, guilt, sadness, shame or confusion, loss of interest in activities) • Increased arousal (e.g., heightened startle response, sleep disorders, irritability) • Many children show signs of post-traumatic stress but do not meet full diagnostic criteria for PTSD.

12. Childhood Trauma and Other Diagnoses • Other common diagnoses for children in the child welfare system include: • Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder • Oppositional defiant disorder • Conduct disorder • Bipolar disorder • Reactive attachment disorder • These diagnoses generally do not capture the full extent of the developmental impact of trauma. • The symptoms leading to these diagnoses may in fact be a child's reaction to a trauma reminder, which can result in withdrawn, aggressive, reckless or self-injurious behaviors. • Many children with these diagnoses have a complex trauma history.

13. Also from NCTSN

14. Trauma and the Brain: Adolescents • In adolescents, trauma can interfere with development of the prefrontal cortex, the region responsible for: • Consideration of the consequences of behavior • Realistic appraisal of danger and safety • Ability to govern behavior and meet longer-term goals • As a result, adolescents who have experienced trauma are at increased risk for: • Reckless and risk-taking behavior • Underachievement and school failure • Poor choices • Aggressive or delinquent activity

15. Trauma and the Brain: Adolescents (cont.) • The brain continues to develop in adolescence and young adulthood, providing increased vulnerability but also a window of opportunity to make new connections based on experiences. • Changes in dopamine levels during adolescence lead to risk-taking behavior.1 • With adult support, adolescents can learn self-regulation, coping skills, and mastery by taking risks • Study shows that the female brain reaches full maturity at age 21-22 while the male brain is not fully mature until almost 30.2 1 Spear, L. P. (2010). The behavioral neuroscience of adolescence. New York: W.W. Norton. 2Lenroot, R. K., Gogtay, N., Greenstein, D. K., Wells, E. M., Wallace, G. L., Clasen, L. S.,Giedd, J. N. (2007). Sexual dimorphism of brain developmental trajectories during childhood and adolescence. Child Development, 36, 1065-1073.

16. Screening and Assessment

17. Standardized Assessments for symptoms: • Symptom Checklist 90-R • Posttraumatic Checklist-Civilian (PCL-C) • Impact of Events Scale • Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) • Trauma Symptom Inventory (TSI) • Trauma Assessment Packet (TAQ, SIDES…) of dissociative disorders: • Dissociative Experiences Scale II • Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (5 & 20) • Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation (MID)

18. Treatment Protocols and Guides Foa, E. et al (2009) Effective treatments for PTSD (2nd ed.) NY: Guilford Press International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies at www.istss.org

19. Enhance Child Well-Being: Resilience • Resilience is the ability to overcome adversity and thrive in the face of risk. • Neuroplasticity allows for rewiring of neural connections through corrective relationships and experiences. • Children who have experienced trauma can therefore develop resilience. • Source: Van der Kolk, B. (2006). Clinical implications of neuroscience research in PTSD. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1071, 1-17.

20. Core Components of Trauma-Focused, Evidence-Based Treatment • Building a strong therapeutic relationship • Psychoeducation about normal responses to trauma • Parent support, conjoint therapy, or parent training • Emotional expression and regulation skills • Anxiety management and relaxation skills • Trauma processing and integration • Personal safety training and other important empowerment activities • Resilience and closure

21. Protective Factors

22. Protective Factors Family characteristics:1 Family cohesion Supportive parent-child interaction Social support (e.g., extended family support) Individual characteristics: Cognitive ability Self-efficacy Internal locus of control (a sense of having control over one’s life and destiny) Temperament Social skills Cultural protective factors: Strong sense of cultural identity Spirituality Connection to cultural community Protective beliefs and values Cultural talents and skills Community characteristics:2 Positive school experiences Community resources Supportive peers and/or mentors 1Benzies, K., & Mychasiuk, R. (2009). Fostering family resiliency: A review of the key protective factors. Child & Family Social Work, 14, 103-114. 2Koball, H., Dion, R., Gothro, A., Bardos, M., Dworsky, A., Lansing, J., … Manning, A. E. (2011). Synthesis of research and resources to support at-risk youth. Retrieved from Administration for Children and Families Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation website: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/fys/youth_development/reports/synthesis_youth.pdf

23. What is restorative justice? Questions currently asked: • Who done it? • What laws are broken? • How will we punish the offender? Restorative Justice views the crime though a different lens.

24. Howard Zehr Since 1979, Director of the Mennonite Central Committee Changing Lenses published in 1990 Little Book on Restorative Justice published 2002

25. Howard Zehr’s questions What is the harm? What needs to be done to repair the harm? Who is responsible for this repair?

26. FGC remains popular in juvenile justice Published in 2004 Social Worker MacRae and Zehr continue RJ work

27. Shared interest to repair the harm Offender Interests Victim Interests Community Interests Victim/Offender/ Community

28. A shift in assumptions about child welfare Bufford & Hudson (2000) from School of Social Work Universities in Vermont and Calgary Restorative practitioners included: John Braithwaite Kay Pranis Ted Wachtel Barry Stuart Gordon Bazemore

29. Family Group Conferencing Maori leaders call for indigenous system of justice Their system was not punishment based but whole community to be involved in repair & solutions 1989 New Zealand passed The Children, Young Persons and Their Families Act Oregon’s Family Unity Model “strength-based”

30. California and FGC Santa Clara County 1996 Family Conference Model, Family Group Decision Making ( FGDM) Stanislaus County Family Decision Meetings State of California: AB 1544 (Stats. 1997, ch. 793) Law moved parent and family into participating decision making conferences about placement, a significant shift in practice in child welfare. Katie A. Settlement Agreement 2011 Core Practice Model Guide (CPM)

31. Katie A. Settlement Work Group finds: Child and Family Teams (CFT) are needed for Katie A. subclass members TDM and FGDM held as specific examples of models and approaches for team meetings

32. Shared interest to repair the family Family Interests Child Interests Community Interests Child/Family Community

33. Family Group Conference- a child’s perspectiveNorwegian Directorate for Children, Youth and Family Affairs (Bufdir) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8Zc8QiJV7Y

34. The stages of a Family Group Conference Opening Information Sharing Family Deliberations/Private time Reaching and agreeing on the plan Closing Monitoring the plan Follow-up

35. What is a Family Group Conference? Brings together nuclear and extended family and kin members, friends, community members, the faith community, professionals, and concerned others who have an interest in a child’s well-being. Based on the principle that families need to be involved in decisions about the children in their family. In the past, in child welfare, social services or the court made most decisions about what happened to children and families. There are better outcomes when families are involved in the decisions that impact their family.

36. Held at three primary decision points: Initial placement situations - TDM focus on central issues of safety & risk (using SDM ) Already in care & facing potential placement disruptions or planned move – TDM assess whether move is necessary & prevent unnecessary disruptions Late in case – TDM reviews changes in family capacity & strengths as they impact safety & risk, to guide plans for reunification or alternative permanency arrangements. Team Decision MakingAECF Family 2 Family

37. Family social worker convenes the family/community group Dedicated agency facilitator leads the meeting Purpose- to make immediate decision and plan regarding the child’s placement Agency maintains its responsibility and ownership for the ultimate decision, while welcoming the input of family and community partners TDM (cont.)

38. Focus on developing and maintaining a positive relationship with the parents and foster parents Convened by child’s social worker Facilitated by social worker or agency supervisor Discussion centers on the needs, safety & comfort of the child & all parties involved If placement related decision is required the social worker will convene a TDM Family Team Meeting

39. Pennell & Anderson (2005) Special Issue on Restorative Justice and Responsive Regulation (2004)

40. Sullivan & Tifft Eds. (2008) Six Chapters by Social Workers Robert Coates David Gil Jeffrey Kauffman Joan Pennell Mark Umbreit Betty Vos

41. Beck, Kropf & Leonard (2011) Landmark book bringing Social Work and Restorative Justice together in schools, criminal justice, child welfare, violence, aging, global & International contexts

42. van Wormer & Walker (2013) Textbook to introduce restorative justice and familiarize students and practitioners with restorative strategies from across the globe and an brief section on RJOY!

43. Being with the Energy of Love and ForgivenessDr. Mark Umbreit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OUnOpbmb7g

44. What Are Peacemaking Circles? Voluntary for victim A Process for bringing people together as equals to talk about the offense or conflict Provides an atmosphere of respect & concern for everyone Face-to-face encounter to repair harm Led by trained Circle Keepers/Facilitators

45. What are Circles? (cont.) Admission of responsibility by offender Incident-based, behavior-based Looks at underlying causes Focuses on empowering participants Comes to consensus agreement Participants decide Circle outcome

46. Typical Stages of the Peacekeeping Circle Process Acceptance community & affected parties determine if circle is appropriate Preparation separate circles for various interests are held Gathering All parties brought together Follow-up Regular communication and check-ins

47. Establishing the Conversation Who is effected by what happened? Who has a stake in seeing things put right? Safe and Peaceful Schools ( Winslade & Williams, 2012)

48. Addressing the harm What do you think of the way that this incident has affected people? Are you happy with that? Was it fair? To the victim: If this situation were to be put right, what would you need? To the aggressor: How could we make sure this doesn’t happen again?

49. Mapping the effects How did it get you to feel? What did it get you to do? What did it get you thinking? How did it affect the way you are with each other? How have other people been affected?

50. Identifying the problem What happened? What part did you play? What can we call it? the problem is the problem (Michael White & Narrative Therapy) What brought you into the trouble